Best Tea Kettles 2010

Kettle by Sori Yanagi, 1994

It's just about to turn cooler and I can already feel my mind straying to thoughts of sweaters, boots and warming drinks. It's time to think about nesting, and for proper nesting you need a good tea kettle. Every home has one, usually sitting right on top of the stove. Aside from wanting to be practical, a tea kettle makes a significant design statement. Can you judge people by their choice of tea kettle? Sure you can, so let's do a rundown of those I like best. Got your own ideas? Please let me know in the comments.

• Chemex Hand Blown Glass Water Kettle: This is a stunning new entry that I haven't personally tried, but here's a reader review: "I have been using one for about a year. I absolutely love it! The handle gets warm, but not too warm to hold it. It pours very well, and is a real work of art."

• Sapper 9091 Tea Kettle: A modern classic from 1983, "This was Alessi's first 'designer kettle', heralding a new season of kettle ideas for the design world. The true heart of this design is the brass whistle whose pipes sing two notes, 'mi' and 'si' when the steam blows through them, giving a particularly attractive melody."

• Demeyere Rondo 83oz Whistling Kettle: Nice recommendation by a reader, this "one combines the simplicity of the Revere with some actual good heat conductive metal and a pleasant whistle tone. This is my favorite kettle after looking at 30 kettles in the last month."

Maxwell left teaching in 2001 to start Apartment Therapy as a design business helping people to make their homes more beautiful, organized AND healthy. The website started up in 2004 with the help of his brother, Oliver.